The Lion King: Generations
by DuskWolf713
Summary: That day I would never be the same. My life would change, and there'd be no stopping me. For that very day the wise baboon told me of a prophecy, a prophecy that foretold the destruction of the pridelands. If only I had listened, if only I'd been brave, none of it would have ever happened at all.
1. Prologue

**Akida's Cubhood**

As a cub, we were taught the importance of the circle of life and protecting that balance. We were to respect it for the circle of life is what gave the pridelands life. Generations had passed since the reign of Scar, and our great grandfather used to tell us stories of him and the great evil he had possessed. We were always fascinated by tales of our land, but father always warned us not to focus too heavily on the past but to focus on shaping the future.

My name's Akida, and this is my story, the story of how I was destined to rule and how I ran from it, leading to the destruction of the pridelands, because unlike my ancestor Simba, I returned when it was far too late.

Ever since I was a cub I was seen as "different" by the other members of the pride. I stepped lightly, spoke softly, and always had my head in the clouds. I was called a dreamer, a wanderer, and a rule breaker. My curiosity always led me into trouble and my brothers were often scolded right along side me.

Faraji was second born, and he wanted nothing more than to please my father. He begged to be named his successor and as much as I wanted the responsibility lifted from me, father always argued that from the beginning of the pridelands it was always the first born that inherited the throne. This infuriated Faraji, but knowing how he would not be named king by birth, he decided to try and prove himself to father instead, to earn his favor in hopes of changing his mind.

And then there was Giza. He was just as ambitious to win father's favor, but more often than not he just ended up angering him. Giza spoke his mind, acted on impulse, he was reckless, quick tempered, and as such father was often harder on him than Faraji and I. Father always kept an eye on him, and made sure to assert his dominance as king whenever Giza acted up. As the king's children we were to uphold certain standards for the kingdom. If we made father look bad he would make sure to punish us for it. He may have been a strict king, but he was still our father and we had to obey him. He always came to our rescue, he listened to us, protected us, but there were times he made us all doubt whether he loved us or not. That void was often filled by mother.

Queen Sadira was well respected throughout all the pridelands. Her heart was so big it was a mystery how it fit in her chest. She cared deeply for all animals in the pridelands, but she loved her sons more than anything in her life. Some would dare to say, even more than the king. She showed us affection, loved us unconditionally, and to disappoint her was a worse feeling than any other pain that could possibly be inflicted. She was always happy, always smiling. Her green eyes were soft and accepting, slow to anger and quick to forgive. To not see her smiling was heartbreaking, and any time any of us made a mistake we feared the way she would look at us more than the wrath of our father. The three of vowed that no matter what the future held, we would always protect her and make her proud. But as we grew we found ourselves getting into more trouble as curiosity led us down new paths.

Chapter 1

It was a rare thing when I got the day to myself, a day where I could just be a cub, where I could be Akida, not the future king. My brothers were always thrilled when I joined them, knowing more games could be played with three than with two. But then they also knew how prone to wandering I was and how more often than not Faraji would be the one to pull me back.

"Come on Faraji" Giza said. "It's just a river, it's not like we don't know how to swim!"

Faraji hesitated as he looked down at the churning water. His eyes widened, "Are you guys sure?" he asked. "Father said the river's dangerous to cubs."

"Don't you wanna explore the grazing grounds?" I questioned as I stood before them both. "We've never been on the other side of the river."

"That's because father…"

"Come on scaredy cat" Giza challenged. "Akida's swum across dozens of times he knows it's safe!"

I nod in agreement. I had crossed on my own before, I'd never made it all the way to the grazing grounds though, that was something I wanted to explore with my brothers at my side. "Please Faraji?" I beg.

He hesitates, looking across the river and then back at me. "You promise it's safe?"

I nod quicky, "Of course" I say. "You can trust me."

The three of us start across. I make it easily and soon Giza and Faraji are racing, trying to reach me before the other did. The were always competing against each other, always trying to prove who was stronger. They both touch the bankside at the same time and then fight as we make our way across the savannah claiming the other made it there first.

There fighting begins to get physical and soon all three of us are rolling over each other. I'm trying my best to break them up but they were both stronger than I was. We roll down a hillside and land in the tall grass of the grazing ground.

"We made it" I gasp. All three of us are silent now, looking ahead in awe. All the animals were so big, there were so many, there was a water hole and trees to climb, smaller animals to chase, it was amazing.

"Tag! Your it!" I say suddenly as I race ahead. Giza laughs a little and begins chasing the two of us as we dodge under the legs of elephants and past the herds of zebra and gazelle. It's not until we reach a particularly dry expanse of land that we all slam to a halt. We're on the border of the pridelands and outlands, and we all know better than to venture there.

"We should go" Faraji stated. "We're too close."

"It looks so weird here" I said as I began to step closer. Giza smirked and began to follow me. Faraji jumped in front of us, blocking out eyes were wide and panicked.

"You know the stories!" Faraji growled. "You know hyenas and outlanders live here, none of them like our ancestors, and they especially don't like any one that shares their blood, no matter how small the amount is."

"Simba himself welcomed the outlanders in" Giza argued.

"That was ages ago Giza!" Faraji replied. "Time's changed."

Giza turned to meet my eyes. "Your the oldest, brother" he said. "What do you say we do?"

I looked between the two of them, as desperate as Giza was to join me, Faraji was begging for us to go. I had gotten us all in trouble numerous times and for once I decided to take the higher road. "Let's go home" I sigh. Faraji lets out a breath of relief and Giza rolls his eyes, "Baby" he mumbles. The three of us begin to head home when a tiny cry catches our attention.

"What was that?" I question.

"It doesn't matter" Faraji interrupts. "We were leaving, Akida, remember?" But I've already started towards the sound, crossed into the outlands, focused on helping whatever was hurting. That's when I spot a newborn cub lying on the bankside. Her big green eyes are overly bright, her whole body is shaking. She's terrified. It's in that moment that I freeze as I see a massive crocodile moving towards her. She begins to run, but her legs are so short, and she's still too young to walk all that well. I think fast, running towards the cub and picking her up in my mouth as I run. The croc's jaws come snapping down, I feel the heat of it's breath rustle the tuft of fur on my tale. She whimpers and I can feel her whole body shaking. She's not yet old enough to talk, but if she could I knew she would be screaming right now.

I can feel the croc catching up with me, and before I know it, it's tale has broadsided me. I fly through the air, landing with a heavy thud into the dirt. It hisses and moves towards the younger cub. She's landed beside me, but she's not moving. Suddenly the croc roars in pain and its then that I catch a flash of blue. Giza has his jaws locked around the end of the crocs tail. Faraji joins him a moment later and swipes his claws at the crocs back leg. The croc lifts its tail and Giza drops to the ground, Faraji's eyes widen and he barrels into Giza, knocking him away just before the crocodiles tail smashes to the ground.

The croc rushes at them and they both run in opposite directions, confusing him. He looks between them both and then targets Giza. His pale blue fur made it easier for him to stand out against the brown earth. Giza heads towards a tree, leaping onto one of the low hanging branches, the croc growls in frustration and charges towards me and the little cub once again. Faraji races to me, he pushes his head against my shoulder. "Move Akida!"

I nudge the little cub. "But what about her?"

"We don't have time!" he shouts. "Move!"

I begin to stand and a sharp pain rushes up my leg, I look down. My paw is bent at a unnatural angle, there was no way I could bare weight on it.

"Go!" I yell. "Take the cub, my paw… its hurt."

"I'm not leaving you!" Faraji growls.

"Faraji!" I shout. The gator is opening his jaws wide, and is inches from snapping down on the backside of him.

Suddenly a dark figure launches across the sky, landing on the gator's snout and forcing it to close its mouth. It doesn't take long for the croc to give in and rush back to the water, bleeding heavily from the new claw marks on its snout. It disappears beneath the murky water and I stare into the deep red eyes of the lion whom had saved us. He sniffs around Faraji and myself.

"Pridelander cubs in the outlands" he huffs. "Abasi must be a fool to let you venture here."

Both of our ears perk up at the mention of our father and it's then that the small cub begins to wake. Upon seeing the big male she instantly scrambles back and hides behind my flank, she's shaking harder than she was before. He narrows his eyes a little, a dark smirk on his face. "My lucky day" he mutters. "The sole surviving heir of King Jahir. Hello Inari."

I can sense the intensity in the air, the look in his eyes is dangerous. I get a bad feeling in the pit of my stomach. "Faraji" I mumble. But I don't need to explain, I can tell he feels the same threat. His hair is standing on end, and a low growl is rising in his throat. His claws are digging into the ground. I knew we were outmatched, that there was no way we all got out of here alive. I lock eyes with Giza. He's made his way halfway down the tree and is rushing towards us when I shake my head 'no.' He stops instantly. He's listening. I knew if he engaged with the stranger he'd be killed. A confident and knowing look comes over his face, the same one he got whenever he came up with a plan. He makes his way back towards the dirty water where the croc had disappeared.

The stranger licks his lips menacingly as he targets her. Upon closer inspection I see that his muzzle is stained red, like he had eaten something days ago and the blood had faded a little but not been washed off completely. It makes me sick. "Leave her alone" I growl.

The stranger chuckles darkly. "Don't be stupid cub" he says. "We both know how this ends."

"You're making a mistake" Faraji speaks up. "We're the heirs of the king, if you kill us he'll hunt you down and see to it that you suffer!"

He laughs again, this time slamming his paw down inches from us and making us jump as we slowly begin to back away. I hold my injured paw off the ground slightly, Inari steps in synch with me, not wanting to be left behind. Faraji's fur brushes mine as we step together, each one making sure Inari was shielded.

He clicks his tongue together, shaking his head, "What a shame cub" he says, still staring down at me. "Looks like you have quite the injury there, this will be even easier than I thought."

Suddenly Giza darts past us, his eyes round in fear, "Now!"

I shove Faraji and Inari out of the way and we slide down the slope behind us. The stranger prepares to leap after us but suddenly the croc smashes into him with brute force and sends him toppling after us. We make it safely to the bottom and Faraji grabs the cub in his mouth just as Giza races to my side and lets me lean against him, leading me out. The stranger slams to the ground, the croc slides down easily, its claws leaving trail marks in the dirt. It leaps at him, its eyes crazed. I could only assume it wanted revenge for the new scars across its snout. The stranger begins to fight him but turns to look at us one last time. He roars loudly and we are all so startled by it we run even faster.

"The pridelands will burn!" he yells. "Mark my words! Abasi's reign will come to an end! All kings will fall until there's none left!"

His words ring in my ears as I lean against my brother. _Who would want to put an end to the great kings? Who would want to threaten the very life of the pridelands? _My vision begins to cloud with every step, the pain growing more intense until finally I black out.

Chapter 2

I awake in Rafiki's tree, my paw bound in vines and sticky with the juice from a strong smelling herb. There are so many different smells in here it makes my eyes start to water and I sniff a little as I sneeze.

"Careful young prince" as voice says as the young healer, Kaiko swings down from a small gap of his tree. "Quick movements like that will only irritate your injury."

"Where are my brothers?" I ask. "And the cub…"

He chuckles a little, "You are just as much as cub as she are you not?"

I know he's joking so I don't take offense to it. The cub was easily two or so months younger than Giza. I was four months older than my brothers which left Inari at two months old. She probably couldn't even talk yet and would still be nursing. I wonder how she could have survived without her mothers milk feeding her.

I look down at my injured paw and try to push myself up, groaning as a sharp pain rises and nearly takes my breath away.

"Akida" Kaiko says. "You must promise to be careful while that paw heals."

I nod, "I will, now all I have to do is figure out a way down."

Kaiko walks over to me and his hand falls on my shoulder. I turn and look over at him.

"Akida" he says seriously. "There is something you need to know."

That day I would never be the same. My life would change, and there'd be no stopping me. For that very day the wise baboon told me of a prophecy, a prophecy that foretold the destruction of the pridelands. If only I had listened, if only I'd been brave, none of it would have ever happened at all.

End of prologue! Let me know what you think below!

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	2. Chapter 1: Heart of Darkness

CHAPTER 1: Heart of Darkness

The destruction was unmistakable, the war between my brothers had taken its toll on our home. The watering hole we used to splash around in as cubs was dried up, and there was no scent of prey in the air. I glanced across the bone dry ground, spatters of blood could be seen for miles. How many had fallen while I was away?

I narrow my eyes as I make my way towards Pride Rock. I spot a single figure standing at the peak, as if he was waiting for someone. I recognized that pale blue fur and white mane anywhere. Giza. I swallow the fear threatening to pull me under and release an ear splitting roar to announce my presence. I begin to ascend the slope of pride rock, only to meet my brother standing before the entrance. He's been blinded in my absence, one eye now a milky blue, the other still shines with the ambition he had carried since he was a cub. He's blocking my mate from me. It's only when I spot something tiny moving between her paws that I understand why. I glance between the two of them, fearing the worst. Inari is cowering, her eyes are wild as she pulls the tiny white cub closer to her. She's afraid. But of me? No. It couldn't be. What had he done to her?

"Giza" I growl.

"Come to kill my heir brother?" he replies as his claws dig into the earth.

"How could you think such a thing?" I demand.

"Faraji's killed two of our cubs" he answers. "Every chance he gets, any time the cubs wander from us he goes after them."

I can't imagine the scene. I can't imagine how much pain Inari must be in. I freeze for a moment.

"_Our _cubs?" I question. I glare over at her and then back at him. "How could you do this to me?"

"You ran away Akida!" he snaps. "What did you expect? Father had already announced her as queen when you ran off."

"She may have had your cubs, but that does not make her your mate!" I snap. In this moment I feel the worst kind of betrayal imaginable. But the question burning in my mind is if Inari had a choice in the matter.

"Do you love him?" I question as I look over at her.

"You left…"

I bare my teeth. "That doesn't answer my question!"

"You need to leave" Giza snaps as he steps towards me. "If you aren't here to kill Faraji then you're not welcome here."

"Kill Faraji?" I question. "Brother how could you even think like that?"

He snarls and jumps at me. I jump back just before his claws can reach me. "Are you deaf?" he hisses. "That murderer _killed _my cubs!" I glance back at Inari. Her eyes are burning with tears, she's cowering now. And I can't help feel it's because of Giza.

"I'm not leaving without her" I say as I look over at Inari.

"Akida…" she murmurs.

"Silence!" Giza roars as he snaps his head towards her. She flinches and the white cub begins to cry. I had done this to her. This was my fault. She was suffering at the paws of my brother and I knew deep down there was no way I could beat him.

"Giza please" I beg. "This isn't you."

"You know nothing about me!" he replies.

"I know that if you and Faraji don't give up this feud, rain will never again fall on the pridelands. The great kings are angry…"

He leaps at me, pinning me beneath him, his good eye flashing and his teeth bared. Even in his weaker state he's stronger than me. I can feel it.

"The kings aren't real Akida!" he shouts. "They abandoned us, they let Faraji kill my cubs, they don't care what happens to us!"

"Your feuding with Faraji has to stop, only then will they bless these lands again."

"How?" he questions. "There is no reasoning with him."

I can feel my heart hammering in my chest. I know how much he will despise for my answer. I dread what I am about to say myself, but the pain and bloodshed had to stop.

"I have to take my place as king."


	3. Chapter 2: Unlikely Allies

**CHAPTER 2: Unlikely Allies**

Giza was watching me now, his eyes searching me over. "Don't be a fool brother" he says. "You know as well as I you don't have what it takes to be king."

I growl and roll out from under him, my eyes focusing on him. "And you do?" I question. "Just look what you let the pridelands turn into, you've turned your back on the great kings, and in return they've turned their backs on you."

"You want to be king big brother?" Giza asks. He has a dark smirk on his face, he looks confident, calm, much calmer than he had been seconds ago. "Fine, then step up and challenge me."

I shake my head, "I don't want to fight you Giza."

He scoffs, "You've always have been a gutless coward haven't you?"

"This is my birthright" I state. "Coward or not this land belongs to me."

"You think any pride is going to follow someone like you? A lion who refuses to fight?" He chuckles loudly and I watch as Inari stands to her paws.

"I'll follow him" she says. "Me and Avi both."

Before I can even blink he's grabbed her cub. It squeals loudly and he pulls it close to him. "No one is taking my son from me!" he snaps. I'm at her side now, both of us are panicked. The cub is crying for her, both of them are dangerously close to the peak of priderock.

"Give me my cub!" she shouts. Her voice is shaking. There is terror in her eyes, her muscles are stiff, I know she is just seconds from pouncing and fighting him, tooth and claw, for her cub.

"No" he replies quickly as they back up, he pulls Avi with him. "I've lost enough!" he snaps.

"Akida" Inari mumbles. "You have to fight him. It's the only chance we have to get Avi back."

I can feel the adrenaline tingling in my paw pads, the sound of my heart thudding in my ears. My blood is pumping hard, every instinct telling me to rip him apart. Inari is pleading with me, I can see how desperate she is, how she fears losing her cub more than anything else. But what she didn't understand was that Giza would always be my brother, he was my family, and I couldn't hurt him.

"I can't" I admit as I take a step back.

I catch Giza grinning as he now stands bolder than ever before. He knew he'd won. He picks up the cub and drops it at her paws. Inari instantly begins to nuzzle and soothe the crying cub. Giza steps over her, growling and locking eyes with me as he smirks. Inari tries to move away but his massive paw crashes down on her shoulder and she falls onto her belly. Her eyes are watering and in that moment I know exactly how she feels. She felt as betrayed as I did when I'd found out about her and Giza.

I try one last ditch attempt to appeal to my brother's better side, hoping that that there was still a glimmer of hope for him, that there was still some part of him that cared. "Giza" I speak softly. "Please, take care of her."

"I'm ten times the lion you are brother" he states. "I'll always keep her safe."

I cringe at his words. _Keeping her safe isn't the same as taking care of her. _I could only imagine how trapped she felt. A take a breath and clear my head. No. I don't have to imagine. In fact, I knew. She felt as trapped as I did.

I walk along the grass, winding deeper and deeper into the pridelands, my head hanging low. There wasn't a thing I could think of to help her. There was no way I could rescue her, not if it meant fighting my brother. I dig my claws into the earth and sit down beside the dry water hole. _Why do you have to be such a coward? Your going to let her suffer her entire life because your too scared to face him. _

"Well, what do we have here?"

I snap my head up the instant I hear his voice. I recognize it instantly. I turn to see Faraji approaching from the dead grass. His eyes are tired and his voice is low, but somehow I still feel a threat in the air.

"The long lost king has come home has he?"

"No" I reply. "I'm not staying, there's nothing for me here." I walk past him, not daring to look back.

"What about Inari?"

"What about her?" I reply coldly.

"She's your mate isn't she?"

"No" I reply. "Not anymore."

"You want Giza gone just as much as I do big brother" Faraji says. "I could help you."

I spin towards him, teeth flashing. "I don't want your kind of help! I know what you did to Inari's cubs."

"Just trying to keep weakness out of the pridelands" he replies. "Any blood of Giza's is a curse on these lands."

"Your feuding with him did this" I snap. "The great kings have left us because of your ambition!"

"But you could bring them back" Faraji states. "You sit on the throne, I guarantee the great kings would weep over this land."

I'm a little surprised by his comment. _Me on the throne? He'd always fought for it, ever since we were cubs. _"So what? After all this time you've decided you don't care about ruling the pridelands?"

He chuckles a little, "Not much of a kingdom now is it?"

I shake my head, "I will not help you murder our brother."

"Who said anything about killing?" Faraji replies. "We chase him out, exile him…"

"What's in it for you?" I question.

"You let me stay in the pridelands" he replies. "Simple as that."

I walk over to him, my eyes meeting him, unflinchingly. This time I had to be brave. I could not show weakness. "If I let you stay, you are to stay away from Inari, and her future cubs are not to be harmed."

Faraji dipped his head respectively, "You have a deal. My king."


	4. Chapter 3: Healing

**CHAPTER 3 **

I look up towards priderock, seeing Giza the moment I get close enough. He walks down to the bottom of pride rock to meet me.

"I warned you once" he says. "I won't let you stay here."

Suddenly Faraji appears on my other side and I can see the panic that lights up in Giza's eyes.

"What's going on here?" Giza questions. "Your siding with _him _Have you completely lost your mind?"

"I want the throne Giza" I reply. "It's the only way to save these lands and ensure Inari's freedom."

He looks past me, locking eyes on Faraji. "He won't let you have it" Giza says. "He's much greedier than I. The second you turn your back he'll have his jaws around your throat."

"He will not stay at pride rock" I explain. "But I have offered him stay in the pridelands."

Giza shakes his head and looks between the two of us. "You can't trust him" he says. "You have no idea the amount of blood he's shed."

"No more than you I'm sure" I reply angrily.

He huffs in annoyance, "You'll regret this" he says. "I'll be back for Avi, I promise you that."

I step closer to him, Giza at my side, the two of us together make him take a step back. "As my first official command as king, you are hereby exiled" I growl. "The penalty for returning to the pridelands will be death."

Giza laughs a little, his blind eye reminding me of just how much he'd suffered, "Death? Sounds a little dark for you brother."

I would never kill him, I knew that much. But he couldn't know. Something had to scare him off.

"Maybe I won't, but he will" I say as I turn to Faraji.

Giza seems at a loss for words in that moment. It was easy to see how badly he'd gotten hurt from Faraji before. There would always be scars there. They would never heal. Farji had killed Giza's cubs without even blinking. Their relationship had been ruined in my absence, there was nothing but bad blood between them now.

"She won't stay with you you know" Giza says as he turns and begins to leave. "She's terrified, and she'll seek me out to protect her. She'll never feel secure with you Akida." Before I can retaliate he's gone, I watch as his pale blue fur fades. The moment he's gone Giza bows before me and then turns away and begins to walk off, keeping to our agreement. I didn't know if I'd ever see either of my brothers again. The only thing I could put my hope in was that time would heal us in a way nothing else could.

**5 months later**

I lie beside Inari, she's looking into the stream smiling as a fish swims by her paws. The sun is shining down and the grass is green again, just starting to grow tall. Everything was perfect.

"Watch this papa!"

A flash of white passes by me and Avi goes head first into the water. The water splashes onto us both, soaking us.

I laugh a little and Inari jumps into the water herself. She begins chasing him and he laughs as he takes each step in stride. He was a strong cub, he was healthy and faster than any lion I had ever known. The future looked bright for the pridelands. I knew Avi would rule well. He was a kind cub, but he was not a coward. He was much like his father in that regard. He would make an excellent ruler. He knew nothing about his true parentage, and I intended to keep it that way. He didn't need to know about the lion who had stolen the throne, who had shed blood, who had stolen my mate from me. Likewise I didn't want him knowing his uncle Faraji either. I didn't trust him around Inari's cubs, and I never would. Not after what he had done.

Water splashes me again and this time it's Inari standing before me. She smiles playfully and splashes me a second time. "That does it!" I run towards her and tackle her into the water again. Avi squeals with delight as he rushes around us in a big circle, spraying up water as he does so. I run after him and he giggles as I finally catch him and hook my paw around him, pulling him back.

We spend a little while at the pond together before heading back to pride rock. The watering hole is very low but it had begun to fill again from the recent rains which is all we could hope for. It seemed the great kings were pleased once again and soon a small herd of zebra had begun to graze here. Avi runs ahead of us and disappears over the grassy slope. It isn't until we are over the other side that we see him frozen stiff. He's looking ahead, the fur on his shoulders is standing on end. I follow his gaze to see Faraji standing a little ways off, his tail thumps slowly to the ground over and over as if he was waiting for something. He licks his chops as he eyes the cub.

I step up to Avi's side, focusing in on my brother. What was he doing? Why was he just watching him like that? There was nothing about his stature that showed aggression, but yet still I didn't feel comfortable with his behavior. Inari reaches my side and steps in front of Avi, blocking Faraji's view of him. A low growl rises in the back of her throat.

"Let's go back to the den," I state.

I begin to walk off but Inari stays glued to the spot, her hackles are raised and her eyes are locked onto him. Her black claws dig into the earth. I turn to her, "Inari, let's go."

Finally she tears her gaze away and picks Avi up by his scruff as she follows close to my side. Avi squeals in protest but she ignores him. I can see how confused he is, thinking he's too big to be carried this way. I had always hated when my mother had done the same thing. Some lionesses just didn't know when to let go of their cubs. But Inari had every right after the way she'd suffered. She didn't trust anyone, especially the lion who had murdered her first cubs.

By the time we're back at the den the sun is setting and is casts a pink and red glow onto priderock. I lie in the entrance of the den and watch as Avi plays, Inari has been quiet since we'd gotten back.

"Something's bothering you" I say. "You know you can tell me anything."

She sighs, her eyes are tired as she watches Avi. She looks so much older than I remember. "I don't think Faraji should stay here."

"Inari…" I begin, as my voice raises slightly, "I made an agreement with him, it's my duty as king to honor it."

"I don't like the way he watches Avi" she replies as she turns to me. "It's like he's waiting for a chance to…"

"I know you don't trust him" I interrupt. "But he's been living peacefully in the pridelands for months, and until he does otherwise he stays."

She shakes her head this time it's her voice that raises, "You have too much faith in your brother" she says. "Have you forgotten what he's done?"

"Of course not!" I hiss as I push myself up onto my haunches. "But he deserves a second chance to redeem himself."

She stands and pushes past me, shaking her head angrily. I could feel the anger coming off of her in waves. She goes to the peak of pride rock and lies down, the sunlight covers her in its warmth. I want more than anything to go lie down beside her, but I know she needs to breathe, she needs to rest on her own. Avi runs over to her and climbs up onto her back. She turns and looks over at him, a soft smile on her face. He nuzzles her cheek and she returns it, licking the top of his ear before he jumps down and presses himself against her belly. He lies down next to her and I watch as his breathing slows and he drifts off to sleep. I couldn't help but wish I was filling the empty space beside him, but I couldn't help but feel guilty that I would be taking his father's place.

_**Please review if you liked it! **_


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